ai4bharat/Pralekha huggingface dataset:
Finance Commission
Finance Commission holds meetings with Finance Ministry
The Finance Commission held consultations with senior officials of the Ministry of Finance on yesterday on the overall economic situation and key economic variables. These discussions are credible to the ongoing work of the Commission to reach an appropriate conclusion on both the vertical and the horizontal devolution. Apart from the Commission’s Chairman & Members Shri Ajay Narayan Jha, Dr. Anoop Singh, the Finance Ministry were represented by Shri Subhash Chandra Garg Finance Secretary, Shri Ajay Bhushan Pandey Revenue Secretary, Shri Girish Chandra Murmu, Expenditure Secretary, Dr. Krishnamurthy Subramanian Chief Economic Adviser, Shri P C Mody Chairman CBDT, Shri P.K. Das, Chairman CBIC and other senior officials of the Finance Ministry and the Finance Commission.
The Commission observed that the GDP numbers have somewhat fluctuated within the overall global trend which suggests continued high growth trend over the medium term. The Commission also noted that the revenue projections on the Direct Taxes are healthy though on Indirect Taxes, there have been periodic fluctuations. On the expenditure trend, there were discussions in regard to the rationalisation of the Centrally Sponsored Schemes in sync with the new life cycle, they being co-terminus with the Finance Commissions.
Detailed discussions have continued over the last few months with the Finance Ministry on the issues of the consequences of UDAY and 7th Pay Commission particularly in the context of the finances of the States.
The Finance Ministry presented before the Commission some preliminary views of the Government on the Financial Terms of Reference of the Commission. The economic development in the last 5 years were analysed in detail with specific focus on Growth, Investments, Industrial Production, Banking and Payments, Inflation and Monetary Policy, External Sector, Medium Term Outlook. The Ministry made its projections for 2018-19 and 2019-20 to the Commission along with its projections for the award period of the XVFC, which is 2020-21 to 2024-25.
The Finance Ministry gave some accounts and overviews of Receipt and Expenditure Forecast including a fiscal overview of XIVFC vs. XVFC both a percentage of GDP and as percentage of GRR. They also made a resource forecast which included tax projections; and a comparative picture of tax growth and buoyancy. The expenditure projections made by the Ministry included expenditure classifications and requirements; expenditure of the Central Government during the award period of the XIVFC and the expenditure requirements during the award period of the XVFC.
The Ministry and the Commission had a detailed discussion on fiscal management in which the Ministry put up a number of suggestions for consideration of the Commission. Discussions were also held on GST issues, local body grants and population data.
The Commission is now awaiting the full Memorandum of the Government of India through Finance Ministry which is expected to be delivered soon.
Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry & Dairying
Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying implements Rashtriya Gokul Mission for development and conservation of indigenous breeds, genetic upgradation of bovine population and enhancement of milk production and productivity of bovines
The Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying is implementing Rashtriya Gokul Mission for development and conservation of indigenous breeds, genetic upgradation of bovine population and enhancement of milk production and productivity of bovines since 2014. The scheme is continued under revised realigned schemes of the Department from 2021-2022 to 2025-2026 with an allocation of Rs.2400 crore. All the indigenous breeds of cattle and indigenous breeds of buffalo are covered under the scheme.
The Dairy Processing Infrastructure Development Fund is playing an important role in creating infrastructure and modernization of existing infrastructure for milk processing, marketing and value addition with dairy cooperatives in the country. Animal Husbandry Infrastructure Development Fund  facilitating incentivisation of investments in creating dairy processing and value addition infrastructure in addition to other components and subcomponent of the scheme in private sector.
This information was given by Shri Parshottam Rupala, Union Minister of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying in a written reply in Lok Sabha today.
Ministry of Micro,Small & Medium Enterprises
Conversion of knowledge into wealth is important for development of manufacturing sector in India – Shri Nitin Gadkari
Union Minister for MSME and Road Transport and Highways, Shri Nitin Gadkari held meeting yesterday via video conferencing with the representatives of the Engineering Exports Promotion Council  to discuss on the growth of the sector post the pandemic situation.
He motivated the panel by suggesting that even though there are short term difficulties being faced by each sector of the economy during the lockdown, “positivity and self-confidence” can help one overcome the immediate hindrances. He stressed on the fact that effective collaboration and cooperation among all stakeholders in the economy can help overcome the current pandemic.
During the interaction, the Union Minister highlighted the importance of MSME sector and applauded the contribution made by the sector in country’s GDP, export and employment generation. He said that the MSME sector currently contributes to about 48% to the country’s export and this has to be further enhanced by means of technological upgradation and product development. In addition, he added that substantial decrease in logistics, transport and labour cost would help in development of the manufacturing industry in India. He mentioned that the other important factor which needs to develop is packaging and standardization facilities in India to support exports from the country – as the world gradually overcomes the Covid-pandemic.
He added that the Ministry of MSME has created a Fund of Fund to give equity support to the Indian MSMEs. MSMEs which have good turnover, GST return record and income tax record will be reassessed, given a rating and thereby supported with 15% equity from the government. This will enable them to gradually raise money from the capital market, enlist themselves in the proposed MSME stock exchange and attract foreign investment.
He further suggested that the industries should invest about 2-3% of their annual profits into research as the conversion of knowledge into wealth is important for development of the industry.
He requested the panel to send across their specifics suggestions and assured all the help from the government.
Ministry of Defence
EXERCISE INDRA-21
12th Edition of Indo-Russia joint military Exercise INDRA 2021 will be held at Volgograd, Russia from 01 to 13 August 2021. The exercise will entail conduct of counter terror operations under the United Nations mandate by a joint force against international terror groups.
250 personnel from both the nations will form part of the exercise. The Indian Army contingent comprising of a Mechanised Infantry Battalion underwent rigorous training at different locations in India to refine their drills for participation in the joint exercise.
Exercise INDRA-21 will further strengthen mutual confidence and interoperability between the Indian & Russian Armies and enable sharing of best practices between the contingents of both the countries. The exercise will be yet another milestone in strengthening security cooperation and will serve to reinforce the longstanding bond of friendship between India and Russia.
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Ministry of Home Affairs
NCRB celebrates 35th Inception Day and launches Crime Multi Agency Centre and National Cybercrime Training Centre
National Crime Records Bureau  celebrated its 35thInception Day, on March 12, 2020 . Union Minister of State for Home Shri Nityanand Rai graced the occasion as the Chief Guest and Shri V.S.K. Kumudhi, DG, BPR&D, was the Guest of Honour on this occasion. DGs and Senior officers from various central and state police organizations as well as former DGs of NCRB attended the function.
On this occasion, besides giving away the medals to officers for meritorious service and other awards, the Minister launched Crime Multi Agency Centre  for sharing of information on heinous crime and other issues related to inter-state coordination. He also launched National Cybercrime Training Centre  for professional quality eLearning services on cyber crime investigation on large scale to police officers, judges, prosecutors and other stakeholders.
Addressing the gathering, Minister of State lauded the role of NCRB networking 15993 Police Stations and 8208 higher Police offices across the country under CCTNS project. He said that the huge database of CCTNS will help investigators in solving crime cases faster. He added that fingerprints were being used in the country from very early times and mentioned that National Fingerprint Identification System being setup by NCRB will be a game changer for police. He emphasized the importance of capacity building in cyber-crime investigation and mentioned the Government’s resolve in tackling the menace of increasing cyber-crime.
Shri Ram Phal Pawar, Director, NCRB welcomed the guests and informed that NCRB has released all the pending publications this year including ‘Crime in India’, ‘Accidental Deaths & Suicides in India’, ‘Prison Statistics India’ and ‘Finger Print in India’, which are being widely referred to by the researchers and policy makers. He briefed the gathering about the automatic matching and generation of alerts to police stations on matching of missing persons with found persons and dead bodies in police data base.
The system will also generate alerts on matching of recovered and stolen vehicles based on national database of CCTNS. He also mentioned how NCRB had joined in Global efforts against Child pornography. He also elaborated about the CCTNS Hackathon & Cyber Challenge 2020 organised by NCRB in collaboration with Cyber Peace Foundation, which received overwhelming response from police, industry and academia. He said that it has helped in gathering innovative ideas for improving CCTNS.
Ministry of Commerce & Industry
Benefit of FTAs to Small Exporters
The Free Trade Agreements  signed by India provide tariff concessions thereby giving opportunities for exports of products including those related to small and medium enterprises . Some of the SME products on which tariff concessions have been provided by trading partners such as Japan, South Korea and some ASEAN countries fall into the category of readymade garments, leather goods, processed foods and engineering products like auto components. The specific export promotion schemes for micro, small and medium enterprises  include those for participation in international exhibitions and fairs, training programme on packaging for exports, Market Development Assistance  Scheme for MSME exporters and National Award for quality products. The Government has also taken the following key steps to boost India’s trade and competitiveness:
The new Foreign Trade Policy  2015-20 launched on 1st April 2015 provides a framework for increasing exports of goods and services as well as generation of employment and increasing value addition in the country, in line with the Make in India, Digital India, Skills India, Startup India and Ease of doing business initiatives. The policy rationalized the earlier export promotion schemes for increasing export of goods and services.
A new logistics related division was created in the Department of Commerce to coordinate integrated development of the logistics sector. India’s rank in World Bank’s Logistics Performance Index moved up from 54 in 2014 to 44 in 2018.
Various measures for improving ease of doing business were taken. India’s rank in World Bank Ease of doing business ranking improved from 142 in 2014 to 63 in 2019 with the rank in ‘trading across borders’ moving up from 122 to 68.
A comprehensive Agriculture Export Policy was launched on 6th December, 2018 with an aim to provide an impetus to agricultural exports.
Trade Infrastructure for Export Scheme  was launched with effect from 1st April 2017 to address the export infrastructure gaps in the country.
Interest Equalization Scheme on pre and post shipment rupee export credit was introduced from 1.4.2015 providing interest equalisation at 3% for labour intensive / MSME sectors. The rate was increased to 5% for MSME sectors with effect from 2.11.2018 and merchant exporters were covered under the scheme with effect from 2.1.2019.
Transport and Marketing Assistance  has been launched for mitigating disadvantage of higher cost of transportation for export of specified agriculture products.
This information was given by the Minister of Commerce and Industry, Piyush Goyal, in a written reply in the Lok Sabha today.
Ministry of Commerce & Industry
Shri Piyush Goyal interacts with the Industry on PLI Scheme on White Goods;
Selection of the eligible companies under the scheme will be done in a transparent and time-bound manner, says the Minister
Union Commerce and Industry Minister Shri Piyush Goyal today held interaction with the Industry on Production Linked Incentive  Scheme on White Goods . The interaction was held to take the feedback on the scheme, the Application window for which will be open for 3 months from tomorrow.
In the Budget 2021-22, outlay of Rs. 1.97 Lakh Crore for the PLI Schemes for 13 key sectors was announced. Through PLI, minimum production is expected to be $500 Bn over 5 years. PLI alone can expand 1/4th of total manufacturing output of the last 5 years. Minimum expected employment through this scheme over 5 yrs is ~ 1 Cr . PLI Scheme for White Goods was notified on 16th April’21. Scheme Guidelines were issued on 4th June, 2021 for Production Linked Incentive Scheme for White Goods manufacturers in India. The Outlay for the scheme is Rs 6,238 Cr for 2021-22 to 2028-29. It extends an incentive of 4% to 6% on incremental sales for 5 years.
Addressing the captains of the industry, Shri Goyal said the scheme has been introduced to produce national manufacturing champions. He said that ‘India’s Growth Story’ will be led by its flagship PLI Scheme. It will bring Cost-competitiveness, Quality, Efficiency & Technology. The Minister said that through PLI, India will leverage its Competitive & Comparative advantage to stake its claim in Global Supply Chains. The scheme will reboot Indian Manufacturing to create Capacity & Capability. Shri Goyal said that the selection of the companies eligible under the scheme will be done in a transparent and time-bound manner.
Ministry of Science & Technology
CSIR-IICT initiatives to reduce dependency for APIs and drug intermediates
Active pharmaceutical ingredients  and intermediates are the key components of any drug that produces the intended effects. India is largely depended especially on China for supply of APIs and drug intermediates. Now Indian Institute of Chemical Technology , Hyderabad, is collaborating with another Hyderabad-based integrated pharmaceutical company, LAXAI Life Sciences, to develop and manufacture APIs and drug intermediates. The initiative may help in reducing the dependency of the Indian pharmaceutical sector on Chinese imports of these ingredients.
IICT, a laboratory under the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research , is working with LAXAI for synthesis of drugs being used in the fight against the Corona Virus. The collaboration will primarily focus on Umifenovir, Remdesivir and a key intermediate of Hydroxy Chloroquine .
India, one of the largest producers of anti-malarial drug HCQ, has seen a spurt in demand in the recent weeks. India has sent HCQ to over 50 countries over the last few days, including the United States. The collaboration will result in a cost-effective process with minimal dependency on China for key raw materials. In addition, Remdesivir, which has been previously administered to Ebola virus patients, is currently under clinical trials to evaluate efficacy and safety against COVID -19.
Realizing that drug security and undisrupted access to essential medicines are critical for public health, the Union Cabinet chaired by the Prime Minister, has approved a special package for promotion of bulk drug manufacturing in India and reduction of our dependence on China.
LAXAI Life Sciences Pvt. Ltd. was established in the year 2007, with a vision to accelerate the discovery chemistry campaign of global pharmaceutical companies. Today LAXAI has grown into an integrated pharmaceutical company with presence in API / formulation development as well as API manufacturing.
The collaboration will use the know-how for commercial manufacturing of the products. LAXAI Life Sciences shall be one of the first few to commercialize these products. The manufacturing of these APIs and intermediates will be taken up at U.S. Food and Drug Administration /Good manufacturing practice  approved plants held by LAXAI through its subsidiary, Therapiva Private Limited.
[Keywords : Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients , Drug Intermediates, CSIR-IICT
For More Details : Dr. M. Chandrasekharam, CSIR-Indian Institute of Chemical Technology, Hyderabad-500 007, India
Email :headkim@iict.res.in]
Ministry of Information & Broadcasting
COVID-19 recovery rate in the states of Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Punjab & UT Chandigarh above national average Actual case load of COVID-19 patients in the country is 3.42 lakhs
Chandigarh, July 17, 2020
Even as the overall recovery rate of the COVID-19 cases in the country stands at 63.33 per cent, the northern region states of Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Punjab & UT Chandigarh have performed better than the national average with recovery rates ranging from 69 to 75 per cent. While Haryana leads with a recovery rate of 75.76 per cent, UT Chandigarh is a close second with 74.96 per cent followed by Himachal Pradesh and Punjab at 70.51 and 69.02 per cent respectively. Taken together, the three states and UT Chandigarh, with 8612 active cases as of yesterday are better placed in terms of total active cases as well.
The status of COVID-19 cases in the northern region as on July 16, 2020 is given below. The recovery rate in all the three states of Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh & UT Chandigarh is above the national average.
|
|
STATE/UT
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|
Total positive COVID-19 cases so far
|
|
Total Active COVID-19 cases
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|
Total COVID-19 patients recovered/discharged
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Recovery rate 
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|
Haryana
|
|
24002
|
|
5495
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|
18185
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|
75.76
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|
Himachal Pradesh
|
|
1377
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|
382
|
|
971
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|
70.51
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|
Punjab
|
|
9094
|
|
2587
|
|
6277
|
|
69.02
|
|
Chandigarh
|
|
635
|
|
148
|
|
476
|
|
74.96
A graded, pre-emptive and pro-active approach under the ‘Whole of Government” strategy has been adopted by Government of India along with the States/UTs for prevention, containment and management of COVID-19. Actual case load of COVID-19 has remained limited and manageable in the country due to proactive measures of containment including house-to-house survey, perimeter control activities, timely contact tracing and surveillance of containment zones, aggressive testing and timely diagnosis, and effective clinical management of the moderate and severe cases through a well implemented standard of care protocol substantially increasing their chances of recovery.
The targeted measures have contributed to a steady decline in the number of active cases. As on July 17, 2020, the actual caseload of COVID-19 patients in the country is only 3, 42,756. More than 6.35 lakhs  of the total cases have recovered. India, being the second most populous country in the world with 1.35 billion people, has 727.4 cases per million. On the global scale, cases/million population in India are 4 to 8 times less than some European countries. The case fatality rate at 18.6 deaths/millions of the country is one of the lowest in the world
The joint efforts by the Centre and the State/UT governments of increasing the testing capacity, ramping up the health infrastructure, prioritizing surveillance in the SARI/ILI cases, and ensuring mapping of the aged population and people with co-morbidities have led to a continuous improvement in the recovery rates seen across India.
Follow our Twitter handles - @ROBChandigarh, @PIBChandigarh and @PIBShimla for regular updates on COVID-19
Ministry of Defence
INS TRISHUL VISIT TO PORT OF TOAMASINA
INS Trishul made a port call at Toamasina, Madagascar from 19 – 22 Jun 2023 as part of Operational Deployment reflecting India's cordial ties with its maritime neighbours. As part of the theme ‘Ocean Ring of Yoga’, 9th International Yoga Day was celebrated wherein 352 personnel comprising ship’s company, officials from Governor’s and Mayor’s office, Malagasy Armed Forces, Women Police, members of Indian Embassy , doctors, nurses, members of Indian diaspora and local citizens participated in the event. H.E. Mr. Rafidison Richard Theodore, Governor of Antsiranana Region, Madagascar was the Chief Guest for the event.
During the ship’s visit, the Commanding Officer paid courtesy calls on Malagasy dignitaries and senior defence officers. Personnel from Indian and Malagasy Armed Forces engaged in wide range of professional interactions. The visit was aimed at enhancing cooperation and mutual understanding between both the navies.
On the occasion of World Music Day, a band performance was organised at The Mayor Hall, Toamasina, wherein IN Band and Betsimisaraka Folkloric Group ‘SAHY’ performed in the presence of dignitaries and local populace and showcased captivating musical performances. The ship was open for visitors at Toamasina, Madagascar on 21 Jun 23 and witnessed approximately 400 visitors.
Indian Navy ships are regularly deployed overseas as part of Indian Navy’s mission of building ‘Bridges of Friendship’ and strengthening international cooperation.
INS Trishul, the second of the Talwar class frigates, was commissioned into the Indian Navy on 25 Jun 2003. The ship is fitted with state-of-the-art weapon and sensor package and carries a multi-role helicopter.
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VM/PS 95/23
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